Conservation Status

While the species as a whole is still very numerous, there is concern in Europe that widespread commercialization of beekeeping is endangering locally-adapted populations and subspecies. This, combined with higher mortality of colonies due to Varroa mite and tracheal mite infestations, and the recent phenomenon of Colony Collapse Disorder in North America, has cause significant concern for the health of the population. Colony Collapse Disorder (CCD) is a condition of commercial beehives, where there are sudden massive waves of mortality among the workers. Beekeepers discover their hives simply empty of workers, with so few surviving that they cannot tend the queen and brood. This condition has occurred mainly in North America, and mainly in large commercial apiaries. No single cause has been identified yet. (Adjare, 1990; Sammataro and Avitabile, 1998)